Woo's Le Samourai?

When it comes to major influences, you'll see the name of French filmmaker Jean-Pierre Melville pretty high on the lists of craftsmen such as Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese and mayhem maestro John Woo.

While it's been a number of years since Woo's last Hollywood attempt (um, PAYCHECK), he tells Movieline that he's not yet finished with Tinseltown. In fact, he says he's interested in doing an American remake of Melville's 1967 crime noir masterpiece LE SAMOURAI (one of my own all-time favorite films).

What makes this announcement even more unexpected is that Woo essentially already used the film as the foundation for THE KILLER. The stylish French original starred the striking Alain Delon as a secluded, enigmatic hitman who finds himself the target of tenacious cops, doublecrossing employers and sly killers.

Woo claims he wants to "make it into a modern film", which likely means adding Glocks, cellphones and hi-tech surveillance equipment.

Woo, whose historical epic RED CLIFF arrives on US shores soon, also says he'd be keen on doing a movie about famous explorer and swimming pool game Marco Polo. He's currently working with Michelle Yeoh on the Chinese-language martial arts film JIANYU JIANGHU.